OBAMA WANTS LIMITS ON DRONE PROGRAM

He sees shift to new stage in war on terror

“Although they can’t be the only tool, they do appear quite effective,” particularly in reducing more spectacular, terror-inducing acts such as suicide attacks and roadside bombings, Johnston said. Drone strikes decapitate the leadership, including skilled planners or rich financiers such as Osama bin Laden once was, and push terrorist groups underground, limiting their ability to gather in large groups, Johnston said.

The new guidelines are expected to reduce the number of drone strikes and provide more oversight by the armed services committees in Congress. But not everyone is convinced that putting the Defense Department in charge of more operations will increase public dissemination of information.

Joe Kasper, a spokesman for Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Alpine, a member of the House Armed Services Committee, said, “the congressman is taking a good close look at the president’s decision, but there are very specific things that need to be evaluated before he can confidently say this is the right move or the wrong move. The most important thing overall is maintaining an effective and transparent drone program.”

Rep. Susan Davis, D-San Diego, also a member of the committee, was traveling and unavailable for comment.

The U.S. drone program is unpopular because of civilian casualties, the lack of due process and violation of sovereignty, Johnston said.

“The bearing on U.S. standing in the eyes of the rest of the world depends on what actually happens after this and whether or not they feel like this is just old wine in new bottles, whether the U.S. really has enacted meaningful reforms, dramatically reducing civilian casualties and all of the other criticisms that have come with the rise of these drone wars.”

The changes in the “drone playbook,” as the presidential guidelines are known, are bound to be closely watched in San Diego, a center of the design and manufacture of two of the largest lethal unmanned aerial systems.

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, which develops the Predator drone in San Diego County, declined to comment Thursday. So did Northrop Grumman, which develops the Global Hawk family of drones in the region, along with the experimental autonomous aircraft X-47B.

The Marine Corps has two squadrons operating catapult-launched drones for the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing headquartered in San Diego, both at Twentynine Palms. Marine infantry and special operations also carry handheld drones into battle.

The service uses them for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, including “everything from loitering over an area of interest for an extended period of time to escorting convoys and being able to give them an eye in the sky,” said Capt. Nick Mannweiler, a spokesman for the Twentynine Palms Marine base.

“No Marine walks alone, and that’s an extension of that concept.”

The Corps began experimenting last year with adding a weapon to its RQ-7B Shadow drone to give the Marines their own strike capability in Afghanistan.

“The plan is still being evaluated,” said Capt. Richard Ulsh, a spokesman.

The Associated Press and staff writer Gary Robbins contributed to this report.